Trials of Osiris is a competitive PvP mode that pushes Destiny 2 players to the limit, but right now the community is avoiding it entirely, with player counts reaching concerning lows.
For the weekend ending August 20,Trials of Osirissaw just 109,449 players take part, as tracked byTrials Report. That is not only an 8% decline from the previous week but also the lowest population the playlist has seen in three years.
This is likely due to multiple smaller factors rather than one big problem. ThroughoutThe Final Shape, the community has protested various features. The likes of Fireteam Matchmaking, frustrations with the meta, and cheating have been among the biggest complaints.
Equally, casual players who are only interested in farmingmeta weaponsdon’t have a reason to play Trials this season. Since the newest expansion’s launch, only one new weapon has been added to the loot pool – Aisha’s Care.
Three other guns were reissued, but this hasn’t proven to be enough of a draw to get people involved. This loot deficit is problematic considering Echoes did not add any new armor sets to Trials, so there aren’t any earnable cosmetics either.
It isn’t just Trials of Osiris that is struggling, as Destiny’s population as a whole has declined. According toSteamcharts, the looter shooter attracted an average of just 42,343 Steam users over the last 30 days, 32% less than in July and 65% less than in June.
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To be fair, somewhat of a decline is expected in the months following the launch of a major expansion. However, in a live service game like Destiny 2, those players should return at some point. Right now, that isn’t the case, with the population declining almost every week.
Hopefully, the content coming in Echoes Act 3 gets players to log on again, with thenext Exotic Missionsaid to be “the biggest,” Bungie has ever created. It’ll also conclude the ongoing seasonal story, making it a must for lore enthusiasts.
Kurt Perry is a Games Writer on Dexerto’s UK team, specializing in FPS and live service games. He is Games Journalism graduate, providing expert coverage of Call of Duty (Warzone, Black Ops, Modern Warfare), Destiny, and Pokemon Go. He also has bylines at PC Invasion. You can contact him at: kurt.perry@dexerto.com
